Giveaway Winner and GF Baking Tips !

So excited to share the winner's name with all of you today. This was a fun giveaway and a prize close to my heart - well, anything to do with cupcakes is close to my heart (which oddly enough is an organ quite close to the tummy).

The winner of the Christmas themed cupcake kit giveaway is:

Les rêves d'une boulangère (Brittany)

Congrats, Brittany ! You will definitely enjoy putting your prize to good use. Please email me your shipping address so I can send it off to you first thing on Monday, December 12th. Email: lemondropfoodie@yahoo.ca

As you can all probably guess, the next giveaway will be coming in January and will be a Valentine's Day themed prize ! So I hope you will all enter into the draw to win.

Now on to some valuable gluten-free baking tips.

Many people are rather confused about how removing gluten from a recipe doesn't result in absolute baking disaster. I mean gluten is the glue that binds, correct? And that it is. But there are options out there that yield the same results without the nasty gluten side-effects many people try to cope with day in and day out.

What are they? Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum. I know weird names but trust me, they work and you cannot be without them when you venture into the world of gluten-free baking.

These 2 ingredients, Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum, can be used interchangeably in your gluten-free baking recipes. They nicely take the place of gluten as the key missing link. Personally, I opt for Xanthan Gum - easier on the tummy , especially if you have any digestive concerns.
Below I have 3 bullets that are a good rule of thumb BUT keep in mind, nothing is exact with GF baking. Trial and error is truly the only way to go. Start off with the minimum amounts as per below and see how it works out for you !
When converting a flour based recipe over to gluten-free, in addition to adding a *GF flour blend you would also need to add the following amount of either Xanthan or Guar Gum to achieve favorable results.
  • Cakes: 1/4 to 1/2 tsp to each cup of gluten/wheat free flour
  • Breads: 1/2 to 1 tsp to each cup of gluten/wheat free flour
  • Cookies: 0 to 1/4 tsp to each cup of gluten/wheat free flour
* NOTE: Some GF pre-made mixes already have these thickeners added so pay special attention to the ingredients !
In closing, a little tidbit of info to share with you all. I am presently working on my first e-book which will be jam-packed with absolutely delicious gluten-free recipes that will result in you, yes YOU, baking up childhood favorites your entire family can enjoy ! The launch date has yet to be determined (still in the recipe creation phase) but you will all be the first to know!

Linda @ Lemon Drop

1 comment:

Thank you for your comments!

Linda @ Lemon Drop